Although a variety of suggestions have been proposed to save the island from default, here are four reasons a clearly articulated, multi-year transition to independence is the only long-term viable solution for Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico is on its way to one of the largest debt defaults in history, right up there with Greece and Argentina. Economic stagnation, or contraction, is not merely a result of an economic cycle but of major long term problems that make the island uncompetitive. But is there a way out?

The Prime Minister's insistence on staging this "nonsense" referendum, in response to a non-existent question, has left him frightfully alone, with a rapidly deteriorating economic situation and another expensive invoice he cannot pay.

Because of the student loan debt crisis, millennials are increasingly delaying investments in houses, not buying cars, and putting off starting a family, which cripples our consumer-driven economy. And perhaps most troubling, they are avoiding graduate and professional school programs.

Germany represents everything that's wrong with the world financial system. Argentina is the epic case of countries whose economies are screwed by policies championed by Germany -- and unfortunately by the United States as well.

Excessive mortgage debt, student loan debt, medical debt and more have placed untenable burdens upon millions. As we learn from our Torah portion, a cursed society is one in which factions are trapped in merciless power dynamics as debtors.

It all comes down to this, the U.S. government will not be able to service its debt once interest rates normalize, and that will be the sad truth regardless of what voodoo tricks Washington uses to report GDP.

There is no one European identity, no one voice that speaks for the myriad of countries that make up the EU. Before increased monetary and fiscal integration can take place, European leaders need to focus on enhancing their political union.